On the day of the fight, Ronan Miranda puts his headphones in and listens to music to make sure he's "in the zone".

The 12-year-old Craigieburn resident is a budding taekwondo star who recently won gold in his weight category at the Australian Open cadets competition in Sydney.

Miranda was one of 18 young athletes in Hume to be awarded a Sports Aid grant last week.

The grant will reimburse the Aitken College pupil for a trip he made earlier this year to Azerbaijan for world championships.

Hume mayor Adem Atmaca said the grants acknowledged the personal and financial sacrifices involved in taking part in sport at an elite level.

"The Sports Aid grants enable the council to financially assist young athletes in pursuing their sporting dreams."